A difficult situation presents itself, or the protagonists find themselves in a bad situation. One of them says something about how the situation, like how dangerous it is. And then another character, showing how tough they are, takes that description and says it's their middle name.

On the lighter side of this trope, it may be when a character states that they're up to a task, and to prove it, that the nature of the task just happens to be part of their name.

Mark: Generosity's his first name. That's why we call him Corky. "Generosity Chivalry Goldsmith", bit of a gobful.

Comic Books

Garfield, who declares that Halloween is his middle name, and then realizes it doesn't work very well: "Gar-Halloween-field." In another storyline, Jon is boasting that Garfield can't hide forever. "You may be sneaky, but I'm sneakier. Sneaky is my middle name." While Garfield is walking around with the sofa, in which Jon is sitting, on his back. Garfield plays it for laughs after Liz scolds him for eating popcorn meant for everyone. "And "everyone" is my middle name, baby!"

In the Archie Comics' Sonic the Hedgehog's volume 0, Sonic says, "Ha! 'Speed' is my middle name! Actually, it's 'Maurice', but don't tell anyone, OK?", in response to Princess Sally asking him if he could keep up with her.

A Future of Friendship, A History of Hate: When Raindrops calls out Rainbow Dash for pulling a dangerous stunt to clear up a thunderstorm in Episode 3, Dash replies that danger is her middle name. Another pegasus watching the conversation points out that Dash's middle name is actually Miriam.

Played with in The Snow Has Stopped The Rain; Rukia continued to look at the little group, trying to figure out why Ichigo 'what's subtlety?' Kurosaki would be trying the legal route to get her out.

In Back to the Future, both in 1985 and 1955, there's an election van driving around telling everyone to re-elect the mayor because progress is his middle name. Mayor Goldie Wilson uses the slogan in 1985, presumably having picked it up from Mayor Red Thomas in 1955.

Glod: "I'm a dwarf. We know about money. Knowing about money is practically my middle name." Lias: "That's a long middle name."

From Hogfather: If I had a first name, 'Duty' would be my middle name.

Artemis Fowl had one character who went a step further and had his first name legally changed to "Trouble".

Mind you, said character is an acknowledged Bad Ass, despite the fact that he gets hardly any notice.

In her first appearance in the Doctor Who New Adventures, Benny tells the Doctor "Surprise is my middle name. Bernice Surprise Summerfield. My poor Mum wanted to hammer the point home." Later books make it clear this is, in fact, the case.

A very early use in the Purgatory section of Dante's The Divine Comedy: as the Pilgrim and Virgil ascend the mountain, they come across a group of shades lounging in the shade of a boulder. Dante singles out a particularly exhausted-looking sinner and tells his guide, "See that man? Lazier he could not look, not even if 'Lazy' were his middle name."

Micky: Don't worry, my middle name is Danger. [Werewolf howls outside.] Of course, my last name is chicken!

In the NCIS episode "Iceman", Tony admits that tardiness is his middle name while chiding Ziva for being late.

Paradise Hotel: Charla claims that "pinky swear" is her middle name.

There's a brilliant episode of UK panel show Would I Lie to You? where Reginald D Hunter tries to claim that his middle initial stands for delicious, because his impoverished black ancestors thought it would bring him prosperity. No one is buying it, despite his poker face: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpTnwzt9kUc

Reginald D Hunter: It was the late 60s when I was born - 1969. There were a lot of black men at that time around my age being given names like Reginald, and Winston, and Delicious. Because at that time in America Affirmative Action has just started, so black women saw an opportunity for their children to get more jobs, so what they did was give them a name that was recognisable yet dignified to potential employers.

Fern Britton: And "Delicious" is dignified?

Reginald D Hunter: Well, er, you have to understand how... It's very different in the black community to your white world! So... um... the name Delicious commands great respect in the ghetto. You probably don't listen to much rap music, do you Fern?

When it looks like Baloo's plane is going to be flown by a robot in TaleSpin, Rebecca tells Baloo to be nice to the robot and its inventor. Baloo replies that "nice is my middle name," and proceeds to cause the inventor to humiliate himself.

Blackarachnia: Three mindless drones. Shouldn't be a problem. Jetstorm: Only three three things wrong with that little theory: one, we're not drones; two, we're not mindless; and three, problem's my middle name!

"Baby Cakes" has Pinkie Pie claiming that Responsibility is her middle name: "Pinkie Responsibility Pie!" According to a flashback in "The Cutie Mark Chronicles" her actual middle name is Diane.

In "Flight to the Finish", Dash became "Rainbow Professionalism Dash".

In one episode of The Simpsons, a man working at the License Bureau refuses to help people until he finishes his crossword puzzle. When the clue asks for Franklin Roosevelt’s middle name, he guesses "Excitement."

Parodied in the Ben 10: Omniverse episode "Rad", wherein the eponymous claims his middle name first to be "Trouble", then "Danger", then finally "Profit". Naturally, Ben doesn't buy any of this, until Rook looks up some information on the guy and discovers that his full name really is "Captain Rad Profit Danger Trouble Dudesman".

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